{ Nutella Spread & Nutella Cupcakes }

 Blame my friend Darla.

It's all her fault.

These recipes are a direct result of her doing.

You can't blame me, I don't even like Nutella.

Well, they are also a result of my failure, but we won't talk about that.

Alright, fine, we will. The other night, I had an event with my youth group. I decided to make Darla's recipe for Nutella Cream Pies. Then, I, uh... burnt them.

I know, I know, but people, I have failures in the kitchen too. O.F.T.E.N.

I still had more cookies to bake (which I did, which I DIDN'T burn), but it wouldn't be enough.

Then... Light Bulb.

And yes, I totally just typed that in Gru's voice.

I decided to just alter her filling recipe a bit and make.... Nutella Spread.

Here's what I did:

Nutella Spread

6 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup marshmallow fluff
3/4 cup Nutella

pinch of salt

Beat the butter until smooth, add in the sugar, then add the vanilla and marshmallow spread, along with the pinch of salt. Lastly, mix in the Nutella. Beat until whippy and smooth.

Serve with Graham Crackers, and cookies like Oreos & Vanilla Wafers. In the photo you'll also see some of the surviving Nutella cookies from Darla's recipe, which are delish- and remember folks, I don't even LIKE Nutella. They have a very light Hazelnut flavor, but a rich chocolatey one.

Now, fast forward two days, and I get a request from one of my Youth Grouppers for Nutella Cupcakes (I always bring treats on Sunday Nights). 

Nutella Cupcakes

I used a boxed chocolate cake mix and beat a 1/2 cup of Nutella right into the batter.

Then, I made a Nutella Marshmallow Buttercream

Nutella Buttercream
Recipe by Tina @ Sugar Bean Bakers*

2 sticks of butter- softened

4 cups of powdered sugar

1 teaspoon of vanilla

2-3 tablespoons heavy cream

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup of Nutella
1/2 cup marshmallow fluff

2 squares of unsweetened chocolate,
melted, and cooled to room temperature 

First make the buttercream, by beating the butter for 3 minutes. Then slowly add in the sugar and salt. Splash in the vanilla and heavy cream and beat for about a minute, then add the marshmallow fluff. Add in the chocolate and the Nutella and beat. If it's too thick, add in a bit more heavy cream, one tablespoon at a time. Beat unti light and fluffy.

*Adapted from  Darla's Perfect Vanilla Buttercream 

Swirl on to cupcakes & top with sanding sugar. I used pure cane sugar on these.

I actually liked these cupcakes as well. The hazelnut is light here, as well. You can totally taste it, but it's not overpowering. Our youth minister really liked them. I'm not sure how many he ate, but I know it was more than 2!

One of the kids said they tasted like fudge, and hey, that's never a bad thing!

Either of these recipes would be excellent for the upcoming holidays. Great for parties and get togethers.

So, failure sometime equals success. You just never know, do ya!

Tina